


who you gonna call?

by watchoutforbats



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Ghost Hunters, Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Based on a Fall Out Boy Song, Buzzfeed Unsolved References, Buzzfeed Unsolved Supernatural, Gen, Ghostbusting (Ghostbusters), Ghosts, M/M, Minor Character Death, Pjo ghost busting au, Swearing, Youtuber Nico, percy annabeth leo and piper are ghost busters, percy jackson busts ghosts to pay student loans, solangelo, youtuber will
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:55:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25809958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/watchoutforbats/pseuds/watchoutforbats
Summary: If you asked Percy Jackson where he thought he would be at the ripe age of twenty, five years ago, he might have said college.Instead, twenty-year-old Percy Jackson was running for his life.When Percy Jackson starts a ghost-busting business to pay off student loans, he expected bogus spirits, and fake demons, easily warded off with some crappy voodoo and a seance. He gets more than he bargained for however, because apparently ghosts are real.At least he's payed by the hour.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase & Leo Valdez, Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase/Piper McLean, Hazel Levesque & Sammy Valdez, Jason Grace & Percy Jackson, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Percy Jackson & Piper McLean, Piper McLean & Leo Valdez
Comments: 7
Kudos: 49





	1. let's blow a hole in this town

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Thanks for clicking on this. was it a mistake? only time will tell.
> 
> As usual, the first chapter in this fic will be used for mainly world building and explanation stuff, actual plot will develop in the following chapters. With that in mind, PLEASE let me know if you don't understand something, something is unclear, or if you have any questions in the comments. I always feel like everything i say only makes sense to me when i'm writing, so i need to know if i have to fix anything. 
> 
> In this AU Percy, Annabeth, Piper, and Leo are ghost-busters of a sort in a attempt to pay of student loans. Ghosts are real in this universe, and so is buzzfeed unsolved, though it goes by a different name, and it is run by nico and will, who will show up later on. 
> 
> Please enjoy and comment if you think something is unclear or difficult to understand.

New York, Present Day.

If you asked Percy Jackson where he thought he would be at the ripe age of twenty, five years ago, he might have said college. Percy was not known for his intelligence, but personally he thought he might have a chance to get a swimming scholarship at some community college. He would try to get a degree in something useful, biology, maybe? Then he could learn about marine biology, which was the one subject he found interesting. 

If you asked fifteen-year-old Percy Jackson where he would be in ten years, at twenty-five, he might have said, that he would love to have a stable job, and maybe a girlfriend. Fifteen-year-old Percy Jackson was not a dreamer. He would never have told you he wanted first place in the Olympics, for swimming, or even a degree at a prestigious university. Fifteen-year-old Percy Jackson was down to earth and logical. He knew exactly what kind of person the rest of the world saw him as, and he knew what the rest of the world would expect him to be. 

Fifteen-year-old Percy Jackson was not happy with the person the world saw him as, or the person he would most likely become, but he was content with the logic of it. 

However, fifteen-year-old Percy, was wrong.

Twenty-year-old Percy Jackson? He was not at college, or participating in the Olympics, or holding down some crappy job to pay of student loans, or hanging out with his girlfriend, or calling his mom, or anything fifteen-year-old Percy Jackson would have expected him to do.

Instead, twenty-year-old Percy Jackson was running for his life. 

“This was a horrible idea!” Percy yells into the communicator. Its just a walkie-talkie, some brand from a Home Depot that Leo re modified into a super-walkie-talkie with the range of a military device and three emergency signal options. 

“Of course, it was,” Annabeth helpfully informs him from her place in the van. “It was your idea!” Percy takes about three milliseconds too long to be affronted by her words. This abomination was not his idea. Annabeth, to her own pleasure, did warn him not to go along with Leo and Piper’s horrible idea. 

He did not listen. Typical. 

Three milliseconds pass, and Percy can’t afford to be angry at Annabeth any longer, considering she was the only thing standing between him and certain death.

Oh yes, the reason Percy was about to die. That is important. 

Ghosts. 

Unfortunately, the reason Percy is going to die, or the best reason he can give, is ghosts.

Oh, the joys of being 20 years old and Percy Jackson. 

Student dept, car trouble, job woes, and ghosts. Percy has many life decisions to re-evaluate. How did he get in this situation? That is a long story that involves a very hot pepper, a horrible dare and a 25-dollar soda. Percy is not willing to divulge the events of that night to anyone. But, to sum up exactly how he managed to pick up ghost hunting of all things as a side job, he will tell you two words.

Student Loans.

Surprisingly enough, New York’s supernatural community was very wealthy and very willing to fork up whatever price Percy asked for a quick ghost exterminator. Fortunately for Percy, this made him a lot of money. 

He enrolled in a local community college to attempt to get a B.A. in Biology, just as his twelve-year-old self would have expected. Now attending his second year, Percy finds himself in a difficult situation, he has no money. When he lived with his mother in Manhattan, they never had much money either. Percy’s mother, however, was an angel. She gave up everything to give Percy the best life possible. Percy is determined to make his mother proud and graduate. But he still needs to get by. 

So, logically, he starts a ghost extermination business. 

The weirdest thing that happens next is not the actual money he makes. It is not the employees he manages to hire, or the clients he gathers. It is the fact that Percy is actually exterminating ghosts. Real ghosts, not just horror stories for kids. “Percy is exterminating ghosts for a living” is probably the weirdest sentence twelve-year-old Percy Jackson would hear and believe (He is twelve! He might be a little gullible, but he is still a kid!). But, even gullible and goofy twelve-year-old Percy Jackson, would never hear the sentence “Percy Jackson has seen definitive proof of ghosts and is now running a successful ghost extermination company with his best friend because he stupidly tried to con his down stairs neighbour, Ms. Dodds and may or may not have accidentally woken up a malevolent spirt who wants to wreak havoc on New York” and actually believe it. And as grammatically incorrect as it was, it was true.

Because apparently, ghosts are real. And no one bothered to tell Percy. 

So, that was Percy’s Saturday. 

“Drive!” Percy yells as he slams open the van door and shoves himself inside, the creepy cemetery he had just bolted through was a blur in the glistening windows of Piper’s minivan.  
Piper, Leo and Annabeth, his three closest friends in the world, the people that he trusted the most, and cared for (apart from his mom and his childhood friend Grover) took in his disheveled appearance and laughed like the jerks they were. 

That was Percy’s Saturday six months ago, today was a Thursday, and Percy was so hyped up on adrenaline he forgot to tell his friends exactly what he was running from. A poltergeist who called themselves “Ethan” with an eye patch and a bad temper. 

The minivan shuddered and shook in its parking spot by the cemetery. Piper and Leo screamed, high and terrified; Annabeth yelled in an almost condescending way, Percy was not sure how that was possible. Piper slammed on the gas and the minivan rolled out onto the street, away from Ethan, and away from the last of Percy’s dignity, which was left in that cemetery, dead as the other inhabitants.


	2. it gets old when you talk to the sun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im back baby!   
> the notes at the end are being a little bit weird for me lol, excuse that.   
> tw; swearing
> 
> also: happy belated birthday Percy Jackson!

Ethan was a spirt Percy and his crew had been hired to exterminate. He was haunting the local cemetery and ruining services. Apparently, the local legend was that Ethan had jumped off a taller building near by, wreaked with grief about his brother’s death, sometime in the 1930’s. This story was impossible, however, because Ethan was a poltergeist, which was not a human ghost, but a malevolent spirt. Ethan was much more violent than Percy had anticipated, and the rag-tag team of ghost hunters was going to need more players on field. 

Money had never been easy for Percy, but with his growing ghost-busting company, he could afford the essentials easily, pay his rent on time, and even splurge on a few extras for himself and his roommate, Jason Grace. 

Percy had met Jason while he was in high school, he had been friends with Thaila, Jason’s older sister. Percy and Jason had formed a close friendship during Percy’s senior year, and Percy had even taken a free year before college to wait for Jason to graduate so they could room together. 

It was during that free year that Percy created his company, Kindred Spirits Inc. His partner and biggest helper was Annabeth Chase, his best friend since middle school. Piper Mclean and Leo Valdez joined the team during freshman year of college. Leo was the tech guy and Piper was the saleswoman. She worked in the field as well, but she had a talent for closing sales and getting a good wage for the team.  
Kindred Spirits Inc was the name picked out by Annabeth. Leo had wanted to call it ‘Ghost Hoes’ and Piper vouched for ‘Demon Repellent’. Demon Repellent was such a convincing number two, that their beat-up minivan was soon named ‘Ghost Repellent’ as a compromise between Piper and Leo. 

Ghost Repellent, or just G.R. for short, had been with Percy since his last year of high school. She had been called Blackjack in those days, Percy had bought her from Hephaestus’ workshop, an old auto repair and scrap yard place run by Leo’s dad. That is where Percy met Leo Valdez. 

Leo was a genius with a toolbelt and was not afraid of anything supernatural. He also had no filter and no sense of self preservation. He and Percy got along great. 

Percy had met Piper through Leo. She and Leo were best friends at the wilderness school for troubled children they attended. Percy understood what it was like to be labeled a troubled child. 

Piper was avid fan of the paranormal. She believed in anything under the sun, or above the sun, back by science or not. Piper was absolutely convinced that crypids like Bigfoot and Mothman are out there, and we simply haven’t discovered them yet. Aliens? Check! Government conspiracy? Hell yes! Ghosts and spirits? Why not? 

Now that they had actual proof of the supernatural, Piper was even more convinced in everything supernatural. Annabeth, however, was not so easily swayed. Annabeth was more down to earth, and it had taken an enormous amount of proof to even have her admit ghosts may exist. 

Jason was a lot like Annabeth, but he had yet to even admit that ghosts were real. Percy had shown him video evidence, the many physical scratches and marks he had received during his ghost-exterminating trips and even brought him along on some of the easier trips. Jason still stood firm that this was all just a massive prank Percy was playing on him. 

Percy’s apartment was small. Just big enough for two people, with only two bedrooms, one bathroom and a tiny kitchen/living area. Jason was in his room when Percy arrived, dropping his keys into the dish on the counter with a clank.

“Jason,” he called, “I’m home!” 

Jason peaked his head out of his door, he was wearing his big blue sweater, proof that he was stressed. 

“Another essay?” Percy asked as he opened the fridge and pulled out the leftover pasta. 

“How did you know?” Jason said as he opened the door the rest of the way, sliding into the hallway on fluffy slippers. 

“Ghost magic.” Percy answered, smiling. He turned, pasta in hand to look at Jason, who in turn gave him a filthy look. 

“Ghosts are not real, Jackson” Jason said, rolling his eyes “Ghosts are baloney and how you have managed to con this many people into thinking that you have solved their non-existent problem with cheap, fake magics is beyond me.”

Percy laughed, “One day, Jason, you’ll believe me, you’ll see.” 

Jason scowled, turning away, and stomping back to his room with childish anger. “You are a con-man! Jackson, you are a criminal! You are lucky I love you, or I would call the police on you. You’ll never trick me,” he called, his finger swiping through the air, hand on his hip. His voice had taken a higher, screeching tone to it. 

“Okay, mom.” Percy chortled from the kitchen. “You need to stop watching that H.B. Unsolved bullshit, it’s messing up your brain!” Jason gasped, he was an avid lover or the YouTube show H.B. Unsolved. He loved the true crime episodes and was working towards a criminology degree, as further proof of his adoration for true crime. The supernatural episodes he watched for entertainment, as he was convinced that ghosts were simply not real. Percy and Jason had a tradition of watching the episodes together on Jason’s laptop. Percy was not as invested in H.B.U. as Jason was, but he loved watching Jason’s eyes light up as he learned about some new mystery or listen to him rant about the “complete bullshit” that is the supernatural episodes. Jason was a self proclaimed “Di Angelite” after Nico Di Angelo, the biggest skeptic of them all.

Jason scoffed and opened his door. “Is that right? I suppose you don’t want to watch the new episode with me tonight. I even bought snacks.” Percy’s head turned like a bloodhound that had caught the scent. 

“What kind of snacks?”

Jason snickered, “That’s what I thought” 

Percy turned back to the left-over pasta, smiling a little, against his own will. He would join Jason for H.B.U. but only for the snacks, no other reason at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so? did you like it? let me know! the chapter title is from something to believe in by young the giant, and its a bop!  
> i guess this fic became a jercy fic? on complete accident? oops  
> lemme know if y'all like the jercy, or if it should stay platonic, because i donno.
> 
> lemme know if you find any typos in the comments or if anything doesnt make sense. Thanks for your support so far, this has been really fun to write. your comments and kudos make my day! 
> 
> stay safe guys!


	3. oh, and what ain't living can never really die

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> H.B.U. marathon with the gang, and a very special introduction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> h e y,, 
> 
> im back?
> 
> so ive been pretty busy lately and totally stressed out lmao, sorry this is so late. I'm not totally happy with this chapter, and the first part is definitely a filler, but the second part of the chapter is pretty plot important so,,
> 
> RILEY!! YOU CAN WRITE PLOT!???!!?!?!?  
> idk man, i didnt know it either!
> 
> TW: discussion of alcohol, some alcohol consumption, discussion of minor character death, some language
> 
> anyways, enjoy!

Percy opened the front door to his apartment. Annabeth beamed at him from the other side, holding a bottle of something alcoholic. Piper was behind her gripping her hand and grinning just as madly. They smelled like vodka. Leo popped out from behind Piper, waving a red cup, sloshing a blue liquid around. 

“Are you guys drunk?” Percy demanded. Piper giggled, pushing past him into the apartment. 

“Its not a party if you don’t have booze!” she said, while being very drunk.

“It really isn’t a party,” corrected Jason, wiping off his glasses, while simultaneously being hugged firmly around the waste by a over enthusiastic Leo.

Annabeth mumbled something about needing a reason to celebrate after the terrible first try at exorcising Ethan. Percy had to agree. He needed a reason to relax. He pulled a can of Coca Cola out of the fridge for himself, and a can of Pepsi for Jason since they wouldn’t be joining in the excessive drinking party. 

Annabeth, Piper, and Leo had come over to Percy and Jason's apartment to watch the new season of H.B. Unsolved, Jason and Annabeth's favorite show. Percy was mostly there for the snacks, Piper had been dragged over by her girlfriend, and Leo was never one to miss out on the group get-together's.

Jason brought out his laptop, propping open the screen on the coffee table, and grabbing a bowl of chips. He sat in the middle of the couch, Percy sat beside him, pulling the blanket around them. Leo leaded in the other side of the couch, his back against the arm rest, pushing Jason and Percy down to the other end of the couch with his feet until he had enough space to spread out. Annabeth and Piper took the love seat, Piper in Annabeth’s lap. 

“That’s gross,” Leo commented, his mouth full of popcorn. Piper reached over to smack him. Jason laughed, shoving at Leo’s feet. He reached over to press play on the first episode of H.B. Unsolved season four, lighting up the faerie lights that were strung throughout apartment, simultaneously. Piper gasped at the pretty show, before reaching to hit Annabeth, who had started to rant about the fire hazard that faerie lights caused. 

Percy smiled and pulled the blanket tighter around him and Jason, feeling pleasantly warm. The familiar intro to H.B. Unsolved played on Jason’s speakers. Surrounded by his best friends, his family, Percy couldn’t be happier, but he was totally only here for the snacks. 

1941, New Orleans, Louisianan 

Hazel Levesque was thirteen. She was old now; she didn’t understand why her Mama wouldn’t let her walk to school on her own. She was old enough to get the mail, to stay at home alone when her Mama worked night shifts, old enough even, to babysit Mrs. Rivera’s baby boy, Jackie. Hazel was old enough to do lots of things. She should be able to walk on her own.  
Sammy Valdez was fifteen, he lived down the street and the two had been friends since they were small. Sammy Valdez was tasked with making sure Hazel got to school and from school safe everyday. Sammy liked to joke that he deserved a paycheque for dealing with Hazel’s nonsense. 

Hazel loved Sammy; she really did. He was sweet and kind. He never made fun of her for being the daughter of the voodoo “queen” of New Orleans and he never pulled on her curly hair.  
Sometimes, however, Hazel really hated Sammy.

“Oh, come on Hazel!” Sammy crowed, scuffing his feet against the pavement. “You’ll be fifteen soon enough, then you can walk to school on your own. You make it sound like walking with me is the worst thing ever!”

Hazel punched his arm, “Mama won’t even let me walk alone when I’m fifteen, you’ll see! She treats me like I’m made of glass!” 

“Better glass then stone! If she didn’t treat you like you’re breakable, then you’d have pissed of the entire Matranga family by now!” teased Sammy.

Hazel scowled. Sammy loved to poke fun at her lose canon nature, but he was just as much as a troublemaker as her. Sammy’s passion for justice would have gotten them both in trouble long before her curiosity or temper could have. 

Sammy and Hazel had a small reputation for getting into trouble in their community. Everything from rescuing kittens, to punching Alec Foreman in the face for calling Hazel a witch. Hazel’s Mama was much to tired to bother with trying to reign in Hazel’s rebellious nature, which made the other mothers of the community terribly angry. Hazel’s Mama was always tried. She worked many shifts at the dinner, day, and night. When she wasn’t at the dinner, she became Queen Marie, a voodoo attraction for tourists. 

Hazel kicked a stone; she and Sammy were out late tonight. They had walked home after school, as usual, but had decided to stick to the streets after Hazel’s Mama and Sammy’s Abuela had both been gone, working perhaps. Sammy lived with his Abuela, a kind elderly woman who wasn’t his actual grandmother, but had taken him in after his parents died. His father in the war, and his mother to a fast-moving illness. Hazel’s Papa had passed away due to the same illness. They didn’t talk about it. 

Sammy turned down a dark alley, Hazel and Sammy thrived in back alleys, hanging out with the stray dogs and cats, and avoiding the men who smelled of piss and booze, however, something about this alley sent shivers up Hazel’s spine.

“Hazel!” called out Sammy, and Hazel realized that she has stopped, her feet frozen to the ground. “Come on! Hurry up!” Hazel’s heart was in her throat. She felt dread rise in her stomach, like a balloon, ready to burst in her. 

“Sammy, maybe we should go home,” Hazel tried, her voice coming out in squeaks.

Sammy turned, walking back towards her. “You’re not feeling well?” he asked, touching her forehead gently, feeling for a temperature. Hazel could not respond, her throat had closed, the way it used to when her mother tried to get her to take the foul-smelling medicine. “C’mon,” Sammy said “there’s a short cut down this alley, well go to my place.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her along. Hazel could hardly move, the cold grip of terror rendering her immobile. Sammy turned and pulled her down the alley, into the dark, Hazel stumbling behind him. 

Hazel didn’t know how she knew it, but she knew, something was in that alley, and it was nothing good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the chapter title is from 'love like ghosts" by lord huron so so what you will with that
> 
> what did y'all think about hazel!?? shes gonna be pretty important! 
> 
> comments and kudos are always appreciated!


	4. the spaceman says, everybody look down it's all in your mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kindred Spirts Inc. heads off to revisit the graveyard where Ethan has been causing trouble. We meet Nico Di Angelo and Will Solace, the faces of Half Blood unsolved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO!  
> i am back!  
> i know this chapter took forever,, dont worrY! i dont plan on abandoning this fic! i have an idea for whats going to happen! however, school started up for me and i have been stressed out of my MIND. the workload is insane, and i have a job on the side as well. in fact i literally just got home from that job.
> 
> I really hope you enjoy this chapter, the title is from "spaceman" by the killers, which is a bop.  
> I see your comments, and they make my day, thank you so much for your reviews, i am so grateful for all of you. 
> 
> you comments and your kudos give me the fuel i need to get this done!

New York, Present day

Percy awoke to the smell of something burning. Usually this was not a good thing to awake to, but Percy had grown up with Annabeth as his best friend, and he new from experience that Annabeth could not cook. Piper, however, could make a delicious breakfast. The smell of something burning, probably meant that Piper was making breakfast, and Annabeth, her ever diligent girlfriend, was attempting to help. Percy smiled into the blanket draped across his face. 

Lifting his head, Percy looked around the living room, where the group had passed out last night after the last H.B.U. episode finished. Leo was passed out on the bean bag chair in the corner, and Piper and Annabeth had very obviously slept bunched up on the loveseat, even thought both girls were hidden in the kitchen. Percy and Jason had fallen asleep on the couch together, sharing the huge Finding Nemo blanket Percy had received for his 12th birthday, years ago. Percy untangled his legs from Jason’s, and climbed out from under the blanket, laughing softly at Jason, who’s glasses lay askew on his face, and had a lovely mustache drawn in blue marker, courtesy of Piper, Percy and Leo. Annabeth had passed out early too, but did not befall the same fate as Jason, because Annabeth was terrifying.  
Percy ambled to the kitchen, grabbing a piece of bacon from the plate Piper was preparing. She slapped his arm with a spatula. 

“Good morning sleeping beauty” Annabeth crowed from behind Percy. She handed him a cup of coffee, rich with sugar, unlike Annabeth’s own coffee, which was black, and quite frankly, disgusting.  
“How are you fine?” Percy demanded “You were definitely drunk last night. You should have a killer hangover right now.” Annabeth shrugged. Piper turned away from the stove top, eggs, and bacon sizzling behind her.

“I, in fact, do have a horrible headache, so if you could keep it down that would be wonderful,” she said, giving Annabeth a filthy look, “Ms. Chase here, is magic or, some shit, and doesn’t get hangovers.”  
“Well Leo is looking worse for wear, too,” Annabeth laughed “His head will be killing him today” 

Percy snorted at that, today the four of them were supposed to go revisit the graveyard where Ethan was haunting. A hungover Leo and a grumpy Piper would not make good team. Percy had a feeling he would be relying on Annabeth for support today.

Breakfast went fairly smoothly. Jason awoke, and promptly smacked Leo awake for vandalising his face. Leo groaned about his headache and took some painkillers. Piper served breakfast, and ate her meal, avoiding the bacon, of course. Jason retreated into his room to work on schoolwork and call Thaila. 

Annabeth and Percy loaded the van with snacks and supplies before jumping into the driver and passenger seats respectively. Piper and Leo climbed into the back, Leo opening his laptop to work on the Kindred Spirits Inc website he had in the works for weeks now. Annabeth started the van and turned in the radio. Annabeth was more of a podcast kind of girl, but she would give Percy and Piper their jam sessions in the van. Percy was more of a classical rock guy, but Piper loved a more alternative sound. 

Percy closed his eyes and leaned back in the van. Forty minutes and they would arrive, until then, he could relax. 

San Francisco, California, One Day Earlier

Nico di Angelo peered judgingly at the screen of his laptop. 

“Do you think,” he said, “that my hair is too messy in these clips?”

Will Solace, his partner and best friend of several years turned towards him and slapped his arm. 

“You are overthinking this,” Will said, smartly. “You look incredibly handsome, and I’m sure the hoards of fan will think so too” Nico snorted, kissing Will on the cheek. 

Nico was seconds away from uploading the first episode of H.B. Unsolved, season 4, the freelance Youtube show Will and himself had become infamous for. Fans were hyped about the release of the twelve, thirty-minute episodes, six dedicated to true crime and six dedicated to supernatural. Something Nico was adamant did not exist. 

This season was going to be a hit, no doubt about it. It was jammed packed with interesting content, hilarious bits and, and a few heartfelt moments. However, Nico could not help but feel, nervous. Anxiety wormed its way into his head, shuffling his thoughts and spilling fear into his movements. 

Thank the gods above, for Will, his partner was an ever present and comforting figure in his life. Nico has not always had a great life. His mother and older sister, Bianca, were killed in an accident when he was younger. His father was never around, and Nico was tossed into the system. 

Nico was always a strange child. He was obsessed with true crime from a young age, and his families weren’t always supportive, as he moved from home to home. One family was adamant that Nico was trying to learn how to kill them. Nico never learned if they were joking. Nico lived with a total of seven families, before he settled with the Zhang’s, a family with Chinese, Greek, and Canadian roots. The Zhang’s and their son, Fai, who went by Frank, were overwhelmingly supportive and kind. Flipping Nico’s worldview and giving him hope for a steady life again. 

Frank was 3 years older than Nico, and while he didn’t fill the gaping hole Bianca left, he was a supportive older brother and a good influence on Nico. Frank and Nico had spent a whole night, one summer, painting galaxies on Nico’s ceiling. Emily and Mars Zhang hadn’t been too exited about the boys staying up all night, but the beaming smile on Nico’s face had made it all worth it. 

Will had come from a huge family himself, he had six siblings. Will was the oldest, having been born when his mother was only 18. His mother had married her long-term boyfriend, and Will’s father, Apollo, a cattle farmer, when Will was seven. Their large family was from Texas, but Will had moved north, to California, to pursue his medical degree. Will passed and became a nurse, but met Nico and joined H.B. unsolved shortly after. 

Nico closed his eyes and pressed enter in the laptop, Will cheered behind him. 

“That’s right folks!” Will said, spinning with glee, “season four is up, up and away! That means Nico Di Angelo is finally free for a date!” 

Nico laughed, gathering his aviator jacket and his wallet, “I believe someone owes me an ice cream,” he said, grabbing Will’s arm. 

In a few days, he and will would be heading out to the first supernatural destination for season five, to do initial recording, and scope out the place. In a week they would stay the night. Nico had to treasure the few hours he got to relax with his boyfriend. New Orleans Haunted Shop of Wonders would have to wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you really expect to see what was going to happen to Hazel? haha sucks to be you. Next chapter,, maybe.
> 
> the story line will even out in the next few chapters, leaving the characters all in the same time period and hopefully, if all goes right, the same place.  
> again, your comments and kudos fuel me, i love them so much! i would really appreciate and constructive criticism you can offer. i am not a professional and i want to improve!
> 
> i dont know if ill have the next chapter posted before halloween, so just in case!
> 
> HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :DDDDD


	5. the night so black that the darkness hummed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so, this chapter was supposed to be posted last weekend. something went wrong, however and i had to delete it.  
> i hope you like this chapter, if somethings unclear or if you spot a typo, yell at me in the comments.
> 
> (sorry for my wacky and random uploads, ive been pretty stressed out lately, irl, and havent had a lot of time to write.)
> 
> title is from hoizer's in the woods somewhere.  
> in case you were wondering, all the songs in the titles are picked to match with the theme of the chapter.

Hazel doesn’t believe in Voodoo. She’s lived in her Mama’s shop of Wonders long enough to know its all make believe. She doesn't believe in the Spells or the magic or the tarot cards or the dolls that her mother puts out. She doesn’t believe in any of it, because she knows it's not real. She knows it's a hoax, she knows it's a way for her mother to make quick money, and she knows that the tourists who fall for it are idiots.

Yet, Hazel feels in her gut, as she walks down that alley, Sammy just steps in front of her, that there is something terrible going on. She feels something akin to the black magic her Mama tells stories about. Something like a gut-wrenching gross feeling that sends her nerves rolling. 

She hates it. 

Sammy doesn’t seem to feel it. He doesn’t notice the grimy black smog that covers everything in terrible energy. Hazel has a feeling only she can see it. She doesn’t know what to do, should she stay with Sammy, stay loyal like her heart tells her to do, or follow her gut and run, run so far, she’ll never turn back. Her feet itch to bolt, but she stays, she is a kind girl, too kind. 

Death is not something Hazel is foreign to. Her Mama is the “Voodoo Queen” and her Papa had died of an illness years ago. Hazel didn’t know him. Death was as ever present as the itch under your foot. It was there, it never went away, and you were not supposed to talk about it, as it was “impolite”. Hazel was never afraid of death. Death would be like welcoming an old friend, after living Hazel’s kind of life. The wind chimes in her Mama’s store rung cold and beautiful noises all too often, the trinkets rustling quietly in the breeze. Hazel would often stand behind the counter, looking over the sea of useless dead majiks and wonder if dying here would feel the same as standing in one place for the rest of a lifetime. If dying would be any different then living. 

Yet here, in the cold damp alley, with a thousand eyes watching her, Hazel is scared. So, so scared, of a death she doesn’t know or understand. She is brave and kind and the kind of girl to withstand a thousand jeers of ruthless bullies. She could fight off and few dozen cruel children who call her “witch” and the child of a fraud. Here, however, Hazel’s bravery fails her. Whatever lurks in this alley, its bigger and stronger than the bullies and then nasty people who call her names, or steal Sammy’s lunch money. Hazel feels dread trickle down her spine, she might die here. Hazel presses on still. 

The alley is dark. Its damp and cold, the bricks of the houses rot and crumble onto the ground. Plants spring up through the cracked cement, but they have all died, weak and frail. One of the buildings is a milkman’s home, the grey concrete steps to the battered wood door have completely broken, smashed and dangerously sharp. The lovely wrought iron sign of a cow swung dangerously on a rusty chain. 

It creaked in the wind, the only noise other then the shuffling of rusty hinges from the milkman’s weathered door. Hazel shuddered, the crawling feeling along her spine growing stronger. Sammy stepped on, though now, even he seemed uncomfortable. Bothered by the dread so thick in the air it might have be palpable, or perhaps the chorus of unnatural creaking coming from the iron cow, Sammy seemed to tense and shudder at every breath of wind.

“Hazel,” he muttered “I think something is wrong”

No shit Sherlock, Hazel thought. She grabbed his hand, the tension in the air was stifling. 

Suddenly, the wind picked up speed and tossed garbage and leaves, twirling thought the air. Hazel jumped and shuffled closer to Sammy. The cow that dangled above them twirled on its chain before the old metal snapped with a clang. The cow tumbled to the ground and landed on its head, pinning in circles, around and around. It paused for a moment, suspended unnaturally on its head before hitting the ground with a loud clang that rang in Hazel’s ears. 

“Fuck,” Sammy cursed, Hazel was too scared to say anything about his choice of language, frozen in place. “That is not normal, that’s not possible, Hazel, that’s not possible, I-, how?” Sammy rambled, staying frozen in place in the stone-cold alley way, not a breeze to be felt. “Hazel, what the fuck, I don’t- Hazel we need to go”

If Hazel could talk beyond the tacky feeling of cotton in her mouth, she would have told him to shut the fuck up and run. 

Behind Sammy’s face, in the dark, dark alley was a pair of glowing red eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you enjoyed!  
> kudos are very much appreciated but your comments give me life!  
> thanks so much for your support so far :DD

**Author's Note:**

> ghosts, bursting into percy's room as he sleeps: *patrick stump voice* am i more than you bargained for yet?
> 
> yes i wrote the summary with that specific wording JUST to make that dumb joke. are you happy? 
> 
> Well thats the end of this chapter
> 
> the title of this fic is from the ghost busters theme song (specifically the FOB version if youre wondering), and the chapter title is from MCR's Bulletproof Heart. I chose the chapter title for my best-friend Alyssa (its one of her fav songs, sorry for outing u as an emo alyssa, but everyone already knew :/), because she gave me the name for the ghost busting business. Sorry your creativity is being wasted on my nerdiness, Alyssa.
> 
> Please stay safe during these difficult times, folks! Stay inside, wear a mask and social distance where possible. Your health matters! <3333
> 
> comments and kudos are always appreciated!


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